Marilyn Fausett Hawthorne, of 125 Beechwood Dr. W., Columbus, N.C., died January 9, 2018 at the age of 86. She had moved to Columbus from Greenwood, S.C. in 2002, where she lived for 44 years.

Born in Greenwood, Miss. September 27, 1931, she subsequently lived in Jackson, Miss. and then moved to Atlanta, Ga. in 1941. She attended UNC Women’s College in Greensboro and then transferred to Furman University in Greenville where she met her future husband. After they married, she accompanied him to Louisville where she graduated from the University of Louisville. Ultimately, she earned a master’s degree in education from Clemson University.

Very active in community theatre, she acted in over 40 plays. She taught high school English for over 25 years in Greenwood and Ware Shoals, S.C. and her students will remember her love for Thoreau. She was an accomplished pianist, a voracious needle worker, and she adored all dogs, especially Newfoundlands, breeding them for over 30 years.

She leaves behind her husband of 66 years, F. Donald Hawthorne of Columbus, sons Benjamin F. Hawthorne (Donna) of Greenwood, S.C., Marcus D. Hawthorne of Greenwood, S.C., Jonathan F. Hawthorne (Shamim) of Toronto, Ontario, and Rebecca H. Schwind (Ash) of Columbia, S.C., a sister, Lucina West of Allentown, Pa., brother Dan Fausett of Peachtree City, Ga., five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

An avid reader for most of her life, she read multiple books per week.  Starting as a teenager, she collected quotations from her reading, entering them on index cards. Her husband has been entering them into a database and has finished over 4,700. He plans to enter the final 500 or more as a memorial to her.

She did not wish to have a funeral service and her immediate family will have a private memorial.

Friends wishing to pay their respects are invited to submit them to the website at www.sandersfuneralandcremation.com. Sanders Funeral and Cremation Service of Columbus, N.C. is serving the family.

Sanders Funeral and Cremation Service
Columbus, N.C.